William h



@uitrit tetes @anni @fitte Leners Patent No. 78,952, 'daad .me 1c, 1868.

IMPROVEMENT IN PISGIULTURE.'v

' @tbl Sibari referat tu in tlgise @anni ntcnttutmrkiug ont uf tigtstmt.

To ALL wHoM 1r MAY coNonRN:

Be it known that WILLIAM H. FURMAN, Vof' Maspeth, in the county ofQueens, and State of New York, have invented 'a new and usefulImprovement is pisciculture, of which the following is a full, clear,and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing,forming part of this specification, and in which- Figure'lA represents aplan of a structure designed for the breeding o'fyish,y in illustrationof my improved method or system, withi the coverto the same broken away,to exhibit the interior, and

Figure 2 a longitudinal sectional elevation of said structure. Similarletters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

In the` natural breeding of fish, such as the salmon oir trout, thedestruction of the ova and veryryouug, by fish of larger growthbelonging to the same and dii'erent species, also by muskraets and manyother natural 3 enemies, so largely reduces the prolific 4 character ofsuch {ish that but a small percentage of the spawn cast hatch, or, 'ifhatching, reach maturity. Y v

There Aare, likewise, other causes which interfere with the propagationof the fish, and certain provisions necessary inbre'eding, whichvmay bebriefly remarked u'ponhere, by way of more clearly explaining theprinciples upon which my invention is based.

i Thus the salmon'and trout, when breeding, invariably seek, for theirspawning-ground, where this same is attainable, a portion of a streamin'which the bottom is of a sandy and gravelly nature, and is fed bynumerous small springs distributed oversaid bottom, and the water fromwhich pereolates through the sand andl gravel, and carries olf sediment,or other matter'likely'to be injurious to the egg-after it has beendeposited. Provided the desired seclusion, can be secured fromobservation and other annoyances, the spawning-ground selected by theiish is usually at the extreme head of the brook or stream, as here thewater is purer than lower down, and

of a higher temperaturepand, the current being weaker, the young fishare not so liable to be carried down thestream among their enemies, noryet so liable `to be destroyed byextreme frosts. But, under the mostfavorable of natural circumstances and resortsyonly a very smallproportion of the ova ejected hatch, or the `young come to maturity, asfew or no natural stream-bottoms are to he found which admit of the eggsinstantly falling so low among the gravel but that a young fish, intentupon stealing the food of a mature pair, will consume a large proportionof them, Nor are there any natural streams or beds entirely free fromsediment, which, through over currents, produce injurioussurface-deposits. And again, most orv all streams are swollen byfreshets,'which carry with them destruction to the young. Likewise, onthese spawning-grounds, thousands of eggs are buried and destroyed byadditional deposits made later in the season.

To overcome these and other diiiculties 'or interferences with the'propagation of such fish is the object of my invention, which involvesal system ot' artificial breeding that closely approximates nature, buta'ords all desired protection to the ova and young, and is generallymore favorable to hatch-ing; and in this respect my system is in no wayanalogous to a method of articial breeding heretofore practised, inwhich the eggs are ejected from the female by hand-pressure, andafterwards impregnated bythe milk ofthe male similarly ejected, whichprocess is unnatural, and the lsh produced by it stunted or inferior.l

.ln'carrying out my'improved system, I construct what maybe termed abrook-shanty, the same comprising an l,artincially-constructedspawning-receptacle and vreceiver for the young sh, with a proper run ofwater through Vthe latter from a head or spring or springs, the waterfrom which i's made to percolatethrough a Y properly-gravelled bottom tothe spawning-chamber, that, together with the receiver, should beprovided with a l cover or covers, made to open or close at pleasure,and the receiver be constructed to admit ofthe old fish from down thestream up through it to the spawning-receptacle; and, furthe'rmore, beprovided with a removable screen, 0.1' other analogous means, forretaining the `young fish till suiiieientlyfgrown .to descendthe streamwith safety:

Referring to the accompanying drawing, A represents a trough ortroughsdivided by a lood-gate, B, to.

form a spawningchamber or receptacle, C, and receiver, D.

isses This trough maybe set in'a brook or sti-earn, preferablylat itsextreme upper end or head, or be otherwise y suitably ldisposed toestablish the run of water through it from a spring or springs, the flowfrom which may,`

if desired, be conducted, by a channel or pipe, a, from a distance, toform an artificial stream, leading through the structure to a pond, itbeing immaterial how the water is supplied, that is, whether by anatural or artificial runso long as itis furnished by a spring orsprings', and made to enter the spawning-chamber C, .by percolatingthrough agravelly bottom, I), to said chamber. l

This bottom may be formed by constructing it of slats, and layingthereon, first, a thin layer of fine, and afterwards a deeper layer ofcoarse gravel; and itis desirable that the ground immediatelyr beneathit should possess numerous small springs. The water thus supplied thechamber C establishes a run over the flood-gate B into the receiver D,and from thence over an' advance fl'oodfgate,`E, tothe ponder lake.

This receiver may be of any suitable size andl shape,}and preferablymade with irregular turns or bends throughout its length, :for 'thcpurpose of establisliingla variablespeed of the water through it, whichis favorable to thehealth and development ofthe fish; er a number ofieceiyers may be so joined/to niake up a continuity. l l

l The general speed of the'streain through the structure may -beregulated as required, by the 'dood-gates or otherwise.,

`F is removable screen or guard, of sufficient height to prevent egressof' the'young fish from "the receiver beforethe time it is safe toallow'theni to go down stream.

Gr G are slotted lids or coversto the spawning and receiving-chainbers Cand D. vThese lids oi" covers may be of any suitable description. y l

When itis required to let the fish up for breeding, the screen vor guardF isremoved, so that the fish, guided by-instinct, go up .the stream,and'through the receiver D into thespawning-chnmber C, where the ova aredeposited, and Aatonce sink among the'graveh'soas to be protectedfromfinjury. YHere the eggs are liatched,land the mature fish, havingbeen returned to the pond or allowed to go down stream, andthe screenorguard F put in its place, the young fish pass froml thespawning-chamber to,the receiver D, vwhere th'eyare permitted to remaintill sufliciently large to go down thestreaui with safety 'fromdestruction bytheir natural enemies, after which ,the guard F is raisedand 'they`are allowed to descend.

During spawning, and while the young fish are in the receiver, the lidsG G emay bc opened or closed as loccasion requires; and if ofan'open-work character, which admits of air and insertion of the-foodwithout opening them, may be loosely covered with matting or othermaterial, where closeness and warmth are required, as, forinstance,gafter the fish have done spawning and during severe weather.These' lids also protect'thc water from injurious foreign mattei',likewise the fish, while spawning, from observation or annoyance, and,by

the partial darliess induced, serve to keep out snails, -and variousinsects or enemies which destroy the ova.`

By this, my improved system of propagating fish, it will be seen that norulcot` nature, in any respect, .is

violated, but much greater protection afforded, both as regards the ovaand very young fish, thanr is attainable under tht-*..most favorable ofnatural circumstances. n

The most perfect spawning-bed or gravelly bottom may here be foi-med,`givinga safe resting-place forl the eggs the instant they-'leave thefish, and the current being'upwards and away, sediment, which isobjectionable, cannot accumulate on or about the spawning-ground, as thechamber C may here be termed.

In fine, all of the-causes which produce injury or d'estruetionybothtothe ova and very young fish, under tbe'natural method of breeding, ashereinbefore referred to, are b'y this, my improved system ofprotection, obviated, or so greatly reducedlas materially to advance thepropagation of such fish as trout or salmon. 'I I What is here claimed,and desired to be secured by Letters Patent, is

1. The method, substantiallyas herein described, ot' breeding fish, bymeans of a structure composed of n. spawning-chamber orreceptacle'and-recciver for the young heb, with the water introducedthereto, in an upwardly'direction,through the gravelly bed or bottom, tolthe spawnngchamber of the structure, and caused. to ilow or passthrough the receiver, essentially as herein set forth.

i 2.'The brook-shanty or structured, composed of a spawning-chamber, C,vand receiver, D, with flood-ga-tes v:E E and guard F, or theirequivalcpts, and having the water introduced through the gravelly bed orbottoni to the spawning-chamber, to establish a stream or currcntthroughthe structure, substantiallyas specified.

WM. H. FURMAN.

' Witnesses:

A. Ln Online, E. P. Tuner.

